Apparatus, methods and systems for remote or onboard control of flights

ABSTRACT

The present disclosure relates generally to control systems, and in particular apparatus, methods, and systems for controlling flights remotely or onboard the vehicle. More specifically, the present disclosure describes embodiments of a control system that allows a user to control the motion of a control target in or along one or more degrees of freedom using a single controller.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to and the benefit of U.S. ProvisionalPatent Application No. 62/945,339, filed on Dec. 9, 2019, the disclosureof which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present disclosure relates generally to control systems, and inparticular apparatus, methods, and systems for controlling flights ofUnmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) as well as onboard-piloted aircraft. Someembodiments disclose a controller that includes an interface forcontrolling the thrust of control targets such as flying objects. Thecontroller may also have a feedback system configured to alert pilots ofobstacles that a flying object senses on its flying path.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

FIG. 1 is an example schematic of a control system for remote or onboardcontrol of flights, according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2A is a side view illustrating a controller including the controlsystem of FIG. 1 , according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2B is a view illustrating the control system of FIG. 1 , accordingto an embodiment.

FIG. 2C is a front view illustrating the controller of FIG. 2A,according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2D is a side view illustrating a controller including the controlsystem of FIG. 1 , according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2E is a cross-sectional side view illustrating a gimbal mechanismof the controller of FIG. 2D, according to an embodiment.

FIG. 3A is a schematic of a controller with a feedback system configuredto communicate with a control target to receive feedback from thecontrol target, according to an embodiment.

FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional top-view of the feedback system of thecontroller of FIG. 3A, according to an embodiment.

FIG. 3C is a side view of a schematic of a user handling the controllerof FIG. 3A, according to an embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present disclosure describes embodiments of a control system thatallows a user to control the motion of a control target in or along oneor more degrees of freedom (DoF) using a single controller. For example,a unified hand controller may allow a user to control the motion of atarget in one or more DoFs, the one or more DoFs including threerotational DoFs (e.g., pitch, yaw, and roll) and three translationalDoFs (e.g., movements along x, y and z axes). For instance, a unifiedhand controller may allow a user to control the motion of a target inthree rotational DoFs (e.g., pitch, yaw, and roll) and one translationalDoF (e.g., movements along z axis). The control system may also beconfigured to allow a user to control the movements of a control targetin virtual settings, such as but not limited to gaming environments. Insome embodiments, the control system may also allow a user to receivefeedback from the control target based on sensory inputs or measurementsprocured by the control target, whether in real or virtual environments.

With reference to FIG. 1 , an example schematic of a control system 100that includes a controller 102 coupled to a signal conversion system 104that is further coupled (e.g., remotely) to a control target 106 isshown, according to some embodiments. The control target 106 can bephysical or virtual objects, such as remotely controlled objects (e.g.,drones, aircraft, fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, robots, endeffectors (e.g., the end of a robotic forceps, a robotic arm endeffector), etc.), camera field-of-views (e.g., including a camera centerfield-of-view and zoom), vehicle velocity vectors, and/or the like. Insome embodiments, rather than being remotely controlled, the controller102 can be onboard the control target 106. In such embodiments, forexample, the operator, pilot, etc., may be onboard the control target106 (e.g., a piloted/crewed flight). Other examples of control targets,whether remotely controlled or otherwise, include electric, hybrid,and/or combustion powered aircrafts, remotely operated vehicles (ROVs),crewed submersibles, spacecrafts, and virtual crafts (e.g., operative ina three-dimensional virtual world). In some embodiments, the controller102 and the signal conversion system 104 may be combined into a singlesystem, while in other embodiments, the controller 102 and the signalconversion system 104 may be separate (e.g., physically distinct, inseparate housings, etc.) systems. In some implementations, thecontroller 102 includes multiple control members 102 a-102 n. Forexample, the controller 102 may include the first control member 102 a,which in turn may include or incorporate the rest of the control members102 b-102 n, i.e., the rest of the control members 102 b-102 n may belocated on the first control member 102 a, which in turn is a part ofthe controller 102. A controller processor 108 a is coupled to each ofthe control members 102 a-102 n. In an embodiment, the controllerprocessor 108 a may be a central processing unit, a programmable logiccontroller, and/or a variety of other processors. The controllerprocessor 108 a may also be coupled to each of a rotational module 108b, a translational module 108 c, and a transceiver 108 d. In someimplementations, there may exist one or more connections and/orcouplings (e.g., wired or wireless) between the multiple control members102 a-102 n, the controller processor 108 a, the rotational module 108b, the translational module 108 c, and the transceiver 108 d.

The signal conversion system 104 in the control system 100 includes atransceiver 104 a that may couple to the transceiver 108 d in thecontroller 102 through a wired connection, a wireless connection, and/ora variety of other connections. A conversion processor 104 b is coupledto the transceiver 104 a, a control module 104 c, and configurationparameters 104 d that may be included on a memory, a storage device,and/or other computer-readable mediums. In an embodiment, the conversionprocessor 104 b may be a central processing unit, a programmable logiccontroller, and/or a variety of other processors. In someimplementations, there may exist connections and/or couplings (e.g.,wired or wireless) between the transceiver 104 a, the conversionprocessor 104 b, the control module 104 c, and the configurationparameters 104 d. The control module 104 c may be coupled to the controltarget 106 through a wired connection, a wireless connection, and/or avariety of other connections.

In an embodiment, the controller 102 is configured to receive input froma user through one of more of the multiple control members 102 a-102 nand transmit a signal based on the input. For example, the controller102 may be provided as a “joystick” or a control stick configured fornavigating in a virtual environment (e.g., in a video game, on areal-world simulator, in a virtual reality environment, in an augmentedreality environment, as part of a remote control virtual/real-worldcontrol system, and/or in a variety of other virtual environments). Inanother example, the controller 102 may be provided as a control stickfor controlling a vehicle, which may be manned or unmanned, such as butnot limited to an aircraft, a submersible, a spacecraft, a watercraft,and/or the like. That is, the controller 102 may be provided as acontrol stick for controlling flying objects such as but not limited tounmanned or remotely-piloted vehicles (e.g., “drones”); manned,unmanned, or remotely-piloted vehicles and land-craft; manned, unmanned,or remotely-piloted aircraft (e.g., fixed-wing aircraft); manned,unmanned, or remotely-piloted watercraft; manned, unmanned, orremotely-piloted submersibles; manned, unmanned, or remotely-pilotedspace vehicles, rocketry, satellites, and/or the like. In someimplementations, the controller 102 may be provided as a control stickfor controlling an electric crewed aerial vehicle, such as, for example,a piloted multirotor drone, often known as an electric-Vertical Takeoffand Land (e-VTOL) aircraft. In another example, the controller 102 maybe provided as a control stick for controlling a robot or othernon-vehicle device (e.g., a surgical device, an assembly device, and/orthe like). FIGS. 2A-2E show example schematic implementations of thecontroller 102 (or 202).

Rotational inputs using the first control member 102 a may be detectedand/or measured using the rotational module 108 b. For example, therotational module 108 b may include displacement detectors for detectingthe displacement of the first control member 102 a from a startingposition as one or more of the pitch inputs, yaw inputs, and roll inputsdiscussed above. Displacement detectors may include photo detectors fordetecting light beams, rotary and/or linear potentiometers, inductivelycoupled coils, physical actuators, gyroscopes, switches, transducers,and/or a variety of other displacement detectors. In some embodiments,the rotational module 108 b may include accelerometers for detecting thedisplacement of the first control member 102 a from a starting positionin space. For example, the accelerometers may each measure the properacceleration of the first control member 102 a with respect to aninertial frame of reference.

In some embodiments, inputs using the first control member 102 a may bedetected and/or measured using breakout switches, transducers, and/ordirect switches for each of the three ranges of motion (e.g., front toback, side to side, and rotation about a longitudinal axis) of the firstcontrol member 102 a. For example, breakout switches may be used todetect when the first control member 102 a is initially moved (e.g., byan angular displacement in the range from about 0.5 degree to about 5degrees, from about 1 degree to about 3 degrees, about 2 degrees,including values and subranges therebetween) from a null position foreach range of rotation; transducers may provide a signal that isproportional to the displacement of the first control member 102 a foreach range of motion, and direct switches may detect when the firstcontrol member 102 a is further moved (e.g., by an angular displacementin the range from about 10 degrees to about 15 degrees, from about 11degree to about 13 degrees, about 12 degrees, including values andsubranges therebetween) from the null position for each range of motion.The breakout switches and direct switches may also allow foracceleration of the first control member 102 a to be detected. In anembodiment, redundant detectors and/or switches may be provided in thecontroller 102 to ensure that the control system 100 is fault tolerant.

Translational inputs using the second control member 102 b may bedetected and/or measured using the translational module 108 c. Forexample, the translational module 108 c may include translationaldetectors for detecting the displacement of the second control member102 b from a starting position as the z-axis (i.e., vertical motion)inputs discussed above. As an example illustration, the second controlmember 102 b can be a wheel (e.g., knurled wheel) as discussed withreference to FIGS. 2A-C, and the translational module 108 c may beconfigured to detect the rotation of the wheel as input related to thez-axis motion of the control target 106. Translation detectors mayinclude physical actuators, translational accelerometers, and/or avariety of other translation detectors (e.g., detectors and switchesdiscussed above for detecting and/or measuring rotational input may berepurposed for detecting and/or measuring translation input). In someembodiments, the second control member 102 b can be spring-centered andconfigured to be pushed down by a user (e.g., towards the surface of thefirst control member 102 a from which it extends), and pulled up by auser (e.g., away from the surface of the first control member 102 a fromwhich it extends), to, for example, provide Z-axis movement or controlof the control target 205 (pushing down causing movement in the negativeZ direction, and pulling up causing movement in the positive Zdirection, for example).

In an embodiment, the controller processor 108 a of the controller 102is configured to generate control signals to be transmitted by thetransceiver 108 d. As discussed above, the controller processor 108 amay be configured to generate a control signal based on one or morerotational inputs detected and/or measured by the rotational module 108b and/or one or more translational inputs detected and/or measured bythe translational module 108 c. Those control signal generated by thecontroller processor 108 a may include parameters defining movementoutput signals for one or more of 4-DOF (i.e., pitch, yaw, roll,movement along a z-axis). In several embodiments, a discrete controlsignal type (e.g., yaw output signals, pitch output signals, roll outputsignals, and z-axis movement output signals) is produced for eachdiscrete predefined movement (e.g., first control member 102 a movementfor providing pitch input, first control member 102 a movement forproviding yaw input, first control member 102 a movement for providingroll input, and second control member 102 b movement for providingz-axis input) that produces that discrete control signal. Beyond 4-DOFcontrol, discrete features such as ON/OFF, trim, and othermulti-function commands may be transmitted to the control target 106.Conversely, data or feedback may be received on the controller 102(e.g., an indicator such as an LED may be illuminated green to indicatethe controller 102 is on).

In an embodiment, the transceiver 108 d of the controller 102 isconfigured to transmit the control signal through a wired or wirelessconnection. For example, the control signal may be one or more of aradio frequency (“RF”) signal, an infrared (“IR”) signal, a visiblelight signal, and/or a variety of other control signals. In someembodiments, the transceiver 108 d may be a BLUETOOTH® transmitterconfigured to transmit the control signal as an RF signal according tothe BLUETOOTH® protocol.

In an embodiment, the transceiver 104 a of the signal conversion system104 is configured to receive the control signal transmitted by thetransceiver 108 d of the controller 102 through a wired or wirelessconnection, discussed above, and provide the received control signal tothe conversion processor 104 b of the signal conversion system 104. Insome implementations, the transceiver 108 d can be configured to receivesignals (for example, from the transceiver 104 a).

In an embodiment, the conversion processor 104 b is configured toprocess the control signals received from the controller 102. Forexample, the conversion processor 104 b may be coupled to acomputer-readable medium including instructions that, when executed bythe conversion processor 104 b, cause the conversion processor 104 b toprovide a control program that is configured to convert the controlsignal into movement commands and use the control module 104 c of thesignal conversion system 104 to control the control target 106 accordingto the movement commands. In an embodiment, the conversion processor 104b may convert the control signal into movement commands for a virtualthree-dimensional (“3D”) environment (e.g., a virtual representation ofsurgical patient, a video game, a simulator, a virtual reality (VR)environment, an augmented virtual reality (AVR environment), and/or avariety of other virtual 3D environments). Thus, the control target 106may exist in a virtual space, and the user may be provided a point ofview or a virtual representation of the virtual environment from a pointof view inside the control target (i.e., the control system 100 mayinclude a display that provides the user a point of view from thecontrol target in the virtual environment). In another example, thecontrol target 106 may be a physical device such as a robot, an endeffector, a surgical tool, a lifting system, etc., and/or a variety ofsteerable mechanical devices, including, without limitation, vehiclessuch as unmanned or remotely-piloted vehicles (e.g., “drones”); manned,unmanned, or remotely-piloted vehicles and land-craft; manned, unmanned,or remotely-piloted aircraft (e.g., fixed-winged aircraft); manned,unmanned, or remotely-piloted watercraft; manned, unmanned, orremotely-piloted submersibles; as well as manned, unmanned, orremotely-piloted space vehicles, rocketry, satellites, and such like.

In an embodiment, the control module 104 c of the signal conversionsystem 104 is configured to control movement of the control target 106based on the movement commands provided from the control program insignal conversion system 104. In some embodiments, if the control target106 is in a virtual environment, the control module 104 c may include anapplication programming interface (API) for moving a virtualrepresentation or point of view within the virtual environment. API'smay also provide the control module 104 c with feedback from the virtualenvironment such as, for example, collision feedback. In someembodiments, feedback from the control target 106 may allow the controlmodule 104 c to automatically adjust the movement of the control targetto, for example, avoid a collision with a designated region (e.g.,objects in a real or virtual environment, critical regions of a real orvirtual patient, etc.). In other embodiments, if the control target 106is a physical device, the control module 104 c may include one or morecontrollers for controlling the movement of the physical device. Forexample, the signal conversion system 104 may be installed on-board avehicle, and the control module 104 c may include a variety of physicalcontrollers for controlling various propulsion and/or steeringmechanisms of the vehicle.

In an embodiment, the signal conversion system 104 includes operatingparameters 104 d for use by the conversion processor 104 b whengenerating movement commands using the signals from the controller 102.Operating parameters may include, but are not limited to, gains (i.e.,sensitivity), rates of onset (i.e., lag), deadbands (i.e., neutral),limits (i.e., maximum angular displacement), and/or the like. In anembodiment, the gains of the first control member 102 a and the secondcontrol member 102 b may be independently defined by a user. In thisexample, the second control member 102 b may have increased sensitivitycompared to the first control member 102 a to compensate, for example,for the second control member 102 b having a smaller range of motionthat the first control member 102 a. Similarly, the rates of onset forthe first control member 102 a and the second control member 102 b maybe defined independently to determine the amount of time that shouldpass (i.e., lag) before a repositioning of the first control member 102a and the second control member 102 b should be converted to actualmovement of the control target 106. The limits and deadbands of thefirst control member 102 a and the second control member 102 b may beindependently defined as well by calibrating the neutral and maximalpositions of each.

In an embodiment, operating parameters may also define how signals sentfrom the controller 102 in response to the different movements of thefirst control member 102 a and the second control member 102 b aretranslated into movement commands that are sent to the control target.As discussed above, particular movements of the first control member 102a may produce pitch, yaw, and roll rotational movement output signals,while particular movements of the second control member 102 b mayproduce z-axis (i.e., vertical) translational movement output signals.In an embodiment, the operating parameters may define which movementcommands are sent to the control target 106 in response to movements andresulting movement output signals from the first control member 102 aand second control member 102 b.

In some embodiments, the operating parameters 104 d may be received froman external computing device (not shown) operated by the user. Forexample, the external computing device may be preconfigured withsoftware for interfacing with the controller 102 and/or the signalconversion system 104. In other embodiments, the operating parameters104 d may be input directly by a user using a display screen includedwith the controller 102 or the signal conversion system 104. Forexample, the first control member 102 a and/or second control member 102b may be used to navigate a configuration menu for defining theoperating parameters 104 d.

With reference to FIGS. 2A-2E, in some embodiments, the controller 202includes a control stick 202 a as the first control member 102 a that isconfigured to be repositioned by the user with respect to the base 208.The repositioning of the control stick 202 a allows the user to providerotational inputs using the first control member 102 a (e.g., threedegrees of freedom) that include pitch inputs, yaw inputs, and rollinputs, and causes the controller processor 108 a to output rotationalmovement output signals including pitch movement output signals, a yawmovement output signals, and roll movement output signals. Inparticular, tilting the control stick 202 a forward and backward alongthe axis “A” (FIG. 2A) with respect to the base 208 (i.e., tilting thecontrol stick 202 a forward and backward about the coupling junction207) may provide the pitch input that produces the pitch movement outputsignal, rotating the control stick 202 a left and right about itslongitudinal axis with respect to the base 208 (i.e., rotating along “B”line about the coupling junction 207 (FIG. 2A) may provide the yaw inputthat produces the yaw movement output signal, and tilting the controlstick 202 a side to side along the axis “C” with respect to the base 208(i.e., tilting the control stick 202 a side to side about the couplingjunction 207) may provide the roll input that produces the roll movementoutput signal. In some implementations, the movement output signals thatresult from the repositioning of the first control member 102 a may bereconfigured from that discussed above such that similar movements ofthe first control member 102 a to those discussed above result indifferent inputs and movement output signals (e.g., tilting the controlstick 202 a side to side along the axis “C” with respect to the base 208may be configured to provide the yaw input that produces the yawmovement output signal while rotating the control stick 202 a about itslongitudinal axis may be configured provide the roll input that producesthe roll movement output signal).

In some embodiments, the control stick 202 a includes a wheel 202 b(e.g., knurled wheel) as one of the multiple control members 202 b-202n. For example, the wheel 202 b can be the second control member 102 bthat is configured to be rotated by the user of the controller 202 aboutor with respect to the axis “D” (FIGS. 2A and 2C) along the line E (FIG.2A). The rotation of the second control member 102 b allows the user toprovide translational movement input to the controller using the secondcontrol member 102 b and causes the controller processor 108 a to outputtranslational movement output signals including vertical or z-axismovement output signals. The translational movement input may includeinput related to the throttle thrust (e.g., when the control target is afixed-wing aircraft) and direction of the second control member 102 b.For example, a user of the controller 102 may apply a force on the wheel202 b to cause the wheel 202 b to rotate in a forward direction orbackward direction along the line E and about or with respect to theaxis “D”. The translational movement input can include the throttlesetting of the wheel 202 b after the force is applied (e.g.,corresponding to the thrust of the throttle) and/or the direction of theforce (e.g., corresponding to the direction of the throttle), and thetranslational movement output signals generated by the controllerprocessor 108 a as a result of the input can include output signalsrelated to the speed of the control target 205 and/or the direction ofthe movement of the control target 205 (e.g., up (+z axis) or down (−zaxis) direction), respectively.

As a non-limiting illustrative example, with reference to FIG. 2B, thewheel 202 b may include markings 210 that include values or modes of thethrottle setting of the wheel 202 b, such a throttle settingcorresponding to the mobility state of the control target 205 such asbut not limited to an “off” setting corresponding to the engine/motor(s)of the control target 205 being turned off, an “idle” settingcorresponding to the engine/motor(s) of the control target 205 beingidled, and/or one or more settings corresponding to the control target106 being in motion (e.g., traveling in the vertical or z-direction at“low” speed, “high” speed, etc.). The controller 202 may include anindicator 212 (e.g., a tab) that is configured to identify the markingthat aligns with the indicator 212 when the wheel 202 b comes to rest asthe throttle setting of the wheel 202 b. For instance, when the mobilitystate of the control target 205 is off or idle (i.e., the engine/motorsof the control target 205 are off or idling, respectively), thecontroller 202 and the wheel 202 b may be positioned relative to eachother such that the indicator 212 is aligned with the marking on thewheel 202 b identifying the throttle setting of the wheel 202 b as “off”or “idle”, respectively. A user may then apply force onto the wheel 202b to rotate the wheel 202 b such that the indicator 212 aligns with themarking on the wheel 202 b identifying the throttle setting of the wheel202 b as “low,” “high,” or any other throttle setting.

In some implementations, the responsiveness of the second control member102 b to an applied force by a user may be regulated by another controlmember (e.g., one or more of the control members 102 c-102 n). Forexample, the responsiveness of the wheel 202 b to the amount of forceapplied on the wheel 202 b when changing the throttle setting of thewheel 202 b may be regulated by a tension tuner 202 c that is configuredto vary the friction experienced by the wheel 202 b as the wheel 202 brotates under the influence of the force. That is, the throttle settingof the wheel 202 b may be adjusted by the tension tuner 202 c. As such,the amount of force one may have to apply to the wheel 202 b to producea given amount of control target speed may be varied using the tensiontuner 202 c. For example, the tension tuner 202 c may have a range ofsettings (values or modes, for example), and when the tension tuner 202c is set at different values or modes, a user may have to applydifferent amounts of force to the wheel 202 b to produce same controltarget speed.

In some embodiments, the controller 102 may include a safety mechanism202 d configured to prevent the unintended rotation of the wheel 202 b,and as such unintended change in the throttle setting of the wheel 202b, which may correspond to unintended change in mobility state of thecontrol target 205. For example, the safety mechanism 202 d can be oneof the multiple control members 102 a-102 n and may be configured toprevent the wheel 202 b from rotating along the line E (i.e., about orwith respect to the axis “D”) (even when force is applied by the user,for example) unless the safety mechanism is deactivated (e.g., apreceding or concurrent action is taken with respect to the safetymechanism 202 d). For instance, the safety mechanism 202 d may include aball plunger that would have to be depressed for the safety mechanism202 d to allow the wheel 202 b to rotate when a force is applied on thewheel 202 b by the user. In some implementations, no throttle setting ofthe wheel 202 b may be changed unless the safety mechanism 102 d isdeactivated. In other implementations, a first set of throttle settingsof the wheel 202 b may not be changed to a second set of throttlesettings unless the safety mechanism 202 d is deactivated, while otherchanges can occur without deactivating the safety mechanism 202 d. Forinstance, the safety mechanism 202 d may be configured such that athrottle setting change from “idle” to “off” may not be allowed unlessthe safety mechanism 202 d is deactivated (e.g., the ball plunger isdepressed), preventing unintended rotation of the wheel 202 b, andconsequently unintended change in the mobility state of the controltarget 106 from “idle” to “off” as well.

In some embodiments, the multiple control members 102 a-102 n include,in addition to the control stick 202 a, the wheel 202 b, the tensiontuner 202 c and/or the safety mechanism 202 d, other control membersconfigured to allow a user provide inputs to the controller 202, andcause the controller processor 108 a to generate output signals fortransmission to the control target 205. In some implementations, theother control members may also be configured to receive data from thecontrol target 205 and/or external devices (not shown) and display thedata (or representation thereof) at a user interface (not shown) of thecontroller 202. For example, the other control members may include aradio communications interface (e.g., push-to-talk radio button), acontrol member for steering the nose wheel of the control target 205, acontrol member for reversing thrust, and/or the like.

As another example, the other control members may include a trim control202 e configured to allow a user input settings for the DoFs of thecontrol target 205 controlled by the controller 202. For example, thetrim control 202 e may be configured to allow a user input commandsettings for one or more of the three rotational DoFs of the controltarget 205, i.e., one or more of the pitch, the yaw, and the roll of thecontrol target 205. In some implementations, the trim control 202 e maybe configured to allow a user input command settings for the onetranslational DoF of the control target 205 (e.g., movement along zaxis). For instance, the trim control 202 e may be in the form of trimbuttons that allow a user input command settings (e.g., rotationalparameters for the pitch, yaw and/or roll of the control target 205) forthe control target to be guided by during its motion. The trim control202 e (e.g., the set of trim buttons for the pitch, yaw and/or roll) maybe configured to be separable from the control stick 202 a. For example,the control stick 202 a may include a button (e.g., a push button)configured to cause the release or decoupling of the trim control 202 efrom the control stick 202 a when engaged (e.g., pushed).

In some embodiments, the control target 205 may be powered by multiplepower sources, and the controller 202 may be configured to allow a userto control the motion of a control target 205 in the one or more DoFs(e.g., the three rotational DoFs (e.g., pitch, yaw, and roll) and onetranslational DoF (e.g., longitudinal movement along the x axis such asthrust for a fixed-wing aircraft)) by controlling the individual powersources separately as discussed throughout the instant specification.For example, the control target 205 may be a multi-engine flying object,and the control stick 202 a may include multiple wheels 204 where eachwheel of the multiple wheels 204 is configured for controlling oneengine of the multi-engine control target 205 (e.g., a multi-enginecommercial jet aircraft, such as a B737 or the like). With each wheel ofthe multiple wheels 204 configured to control an engine of themulti-engine control target 205, one of the wheels can be manipulated toshut down one of the engines while the other wheel can be manipulated tocontrol the other engine. In such examples, the safety mechanism 206 mayalso include at least as many safety mechanism elements as the number ofwheels of the multiple wheels 204, and each safety mechanism element maybe configured to prevent the unintended rotation of the respective wheelof the multiple wheels 204. In some implementations, the safetymechanism 206 can be configured to prevent abrupt shutoff of a motor,engine, rotor, and/or the like associated with the control target. Morespecifically, the safety mechanism 206 can prevent one or more wheels204 from moving from an “idle” position to an “off” position when thesafety mechanism 206 is engaged, and allow movement from the “idle”position to the “off” position when the safety mechanism 206 isdisengaged. In this manner, at least two actions are required totransition from “idle” to “off” including disengagement of the safetymechanism 206 and manipulation of the one or more wheels 204. In someimplementations, the multiple wheels 204 may be synchronized with eachother such that when a user of the controller 202 applies a force on oneof the multiple wheels 204 to cause that multiple wheel to rotate, theother(s) of the multiple wheels 204 may also rotate in a substantiallysimilar manner as that multiple wheel. In other implementations, themultiple wheels 204 may not be synchronized and a user may engage themultiple wheels 204 separately to control the multiple power sources ofthe control target 205 separately. For instance, a user may use one ofthe multiple wheels 204 to idle or shut down one engine of themulti-engine control target 205 (e.g., by aligning the throttle setting“idle” or “off” of that one wheel with the indicator 212 of thecontroller 202, respectively) while the other engine is operating. Thesynchronization, or lack thereof, of the multiple wheels 204 may becontrolled by a synchronicity control element (e.g., a tab) (not shown)that is located on the controller 202 and configured to allow asubstantially precise adjustment of the throttle settings of themultiple wheels 204 with one hand of a user while the other hand isplaced on the control stick 202 a.

In some embodiments, with reference to FIG. 2D, the controller 202 has(a) a first control member 202 a, a joystick-like structure with threeindependent degrees of movement that is intended to be gripped by auser's hand, and (b) a second control member 202 b mounted on the firstcontrol member 202 a for manipulation by a thumb or other digit on thehand of the user that is gripping the first control member 202 a, whichenable a user to generate four independent control inputs for commandingmovement of the vehicle in four DoFs. A proximal end of the firstcontrol member 202 a is pivotally connected to the base 208 so that thefirst control member 202 a can be independently pivoted along an x-axisand independently pivoted along a y-axis. In this example, the base 208is configured to be supported by a user (e.g. held by a user's hand orotherwise carried on the user's body such as by an arm brace, harness,etc.). A base supported by a user provides a consistent, known referenceframe even while moving, e.g., walking, skiing, running, driving, can beused for inspection, security and cinematographic drone missions.

In some embodiments, a resilient member such as, for example, a spring,may be positioned between the first control member 202 a and the base208 in order to provide resilient movement up or down along thelongitudinal axis of the first control member 202 a. In someembodiments, such movement up or down along the longitudinal axis of thefirst control member relative to the base 208 may be configured togenerate Z-axis movement (up or down, vertical movement) of the controltarget. In some embodiments, movement forward or aft relative to thelongitudinal axis of the first control member relative to the base 208may be configured to generate X-axis movement (forward or aft,longitudinal movement) of the control target (e.g., a fixed-wingaircraft).

In some embodiments, with reference to FIG. 2E, the controller 202 caninclude a two-axis gimbal mount 230 that can be used as part of an inputdevice for generating control inputs to command a camera or sensorsteering system. The two-axis gimbal mount 230 can be used to supportsimultaneous angular displacement and measurement of the angulardisplacement in two DoFs but may be adapted by locking one DoF to beused to support a first control member 202 a (e.g., as shown in FIG. 2D)for displacement in a single DoF. The gimbal can be mounted in a base,such as base 208. Its post 222 can couple the gimbal mount 230 to thefirst control member 202 a. The first control member 202 a pivots thepost 222 about two orthogonal axes that intersect at the center of thegimbal. One axis remains fixed relative to the base and the otherrotates about the fixed axis. Two-axis gimbal mount 230 is arepresentative example of a two-axis gimbal that has been adapted togenerate to haptic feedback upon the first control member 202 a leavingand reentering a predefined null position for each of these two axes ofrotation.

Furthermore, in an alternate embodiment in which the gimbal can belocked or blocked from rotation about one axis to allow only forrotation about one axis, the detents for generating force feedback forrotation about the locked or blocked axis could be omitted.

The gimbal can be comprised of two members: a first member 232 thatremains fixed with respect to base 236 and a second member 228 that isconstrained by the first member 232 to rotate about a single axis or torotate about each of two orthogonal axes, and to otherwise restrictrelative rotation of the first and second members 232, 228 around anyother axis. A post 222 is coupled to the second member 228 to pivotabout each of the two orthogonal axes. If the second member 228 isrestricted to rotate only about one of the two orthogonal axes, the post222 is coupled with the second member 228 so that it is can pivot aboutthe second axis without rotating the second member 228.

In this particular implementation, which is intended to berepresentative, a ball (i.e., the second member) 228 is mounted within asocket (i.e., the first member) 232. An extension 234 of the post 222fits within a complementary opening formed in the ball 228 so thatangular displacement or pivoting of the post 222 also rotates the ball228. In this example, the ball 228 is retained within the socket 232 sothat it can freely rotate within the socket 232 in two DoFs, about eachof two axes that are mutually orthogonal to each other, with one of thetwo axes remaining fixed relative to the base 236 of the gimbal mount230. It may, optionally, be permitted to rotate about a third mutuallyorthogonal axis extending through the post 222. The base 236 isrepresentative of a structure for mounting the gimbal on to the base208, against which the first control member 202 a may react.

A cap 238 that is connected with the post 222 extends over aspherically-shaped outer surface of the socket 232 and has acomplementary, spherical inner surface. Pivoting of the post 222 movesthe cap relative to the socket.

Although an inner surface of socket 232 can complement and supportrotation of the ball 228, the ball 228 can, in alternative embodiments,be supported for rotation about one or both mutually orthogonal axes ofrotation in other ways and by other means, including by one or moreshafts or axles that support rotation of the ball 228 relative to thesocket 232. In such an alternative embodiment, the ball 228 and insidesurfaces of the socket 232 need not be spherical or complementary.

In some embodiments, the controller 202 can be configured to control acrewed aerial vehicle with distributed electric propulsion (withelectrical power supplied by a battery and/or hybrid system), such as,for example, a piloted multirotor drone, with or without wings togenerate additional lift. In such embodiments, the first control member202 a can include a spring-centered mechanism, as described in furtherdetail herein, thereby providing translational control (e.g., subtletranslation) along the X, Y, and Z axis, as well as rotational control(e.g., yaw), as described in various embodiments herein. Further, insome implementations, the wheels 204 can each control a separate thrustcomponent (e.g., a pusher prop behind the piloted multirotor drone). Forexample, one thrust component can provide for levitation andorientation, and a second thrust component can provide for speed (e.g.,a “go fast”) control, e.g., once safe cruise altitude is achieved.

With reference to FIGS. 3A-B, in some embodiments, the control target306 such as but not limited to remotely-piloted vehicles (e.g.,“drones”), land-craft, aircraft (e.g., fixed-wing aircraft), watercraft,submersibles, space vehicles, rocketry, satellites, a surgical device,an assembly or industrial device, and/or the like may be equipped withdetectors configured to sense objects 304 in the vicinity of the controltarget 306 and/or obstacles along the travel path of the control target306. The detectors may be configured to detect still as well as movingobjects that pose a risk of collision with the control target 306. Forinstance, the detectors may be configured to detect still objects thatare within a specified radius of the control target 306. As anotherexample, the detectors may be configured to detect moving objects thatare within a specified radius of the control target and are traveling atgreater than a given velocity. Examples of such detectors include lightdetecting and ranging (LIDAR) systems, radar, GPS (with reference to aMAP), ADS-B (for avoiding other aircraft), video (and associated videoanalytics).

In some implementations, to avoid collisions with the sensed objects orobstacles 304, the control target 306 may provide feedback to thecontroller 302 controlling the control target 306 regarding the presenceand status of the sensed objects or obstacles 304. The detectors and/orother communication system operatively coupled to the control target 306may transmit data to the controller 302 (e.g., to the transceiver 104 aof the controller 302), the data including sensed object informationsuch as but not limited to the distance of the sensed object 304 fromthe control target 306, the angular displacement of the sensed object304 from the control target 306, the velocity of the sensed object 304if the sensed object is in motion, and/or the like.

In some embodiments, the controller 302 may include a control module(not shown) (e.g., such as the control module 104 c) configured toanalyze the received data and generate signals configured to trigger,based on the result of the analysis, user feedback systems locatedwithin the controller 302. For example, the received data may includesuccessive data including location information of a sensed object 304,and the analysis may determine the speed and direction of a sensedobject or obstacle 304 approaching the control target 306. As anotherexample, the received data may already include the information relatedto the speed and direction of the approach of the sensed object orobstacle 304. In such examples, the control module may trigger afeedback system of the controller 302 in a manner that informs the userof the controller 302 the direction (e.g., from the perspective of thecontrol target 306) at which the sensed object or obstacle 304 islocated or from which the sensed object or obstacle 304 is approaching,and/or the rate at which the sensed object or obstacle 304 isapproaching the control target 306.

The manner in which the feedback system informs the user of thecontroller 302 information related to objects or obstacles 304 sensed bythe control target 306 can depend on the feedback elements of thecontroller 302. In some implementations, the feedback may be in the formof haptic feedback, and the feedback elements of the controller 302 canbe one or more vibration haptic motors 308 a-308 n located or positionedon or within the controller 302 (e.g., two, three, four, five, six,seven, eight, etc., vibration haptic motors 308 a-308 n). In suchimplementations, the control module of the controller 302 may generatesignals that are configured to cause the vibration haptic motors 308a-308 n of the controller vibrate according to a pre-definedrelationship between the pattern of vibration of the vibration hapticmotors 308 a-308 n and information related to the sensed objects orobstacles 304. For example, the rate of vibration of the vibrationhaptic motors 308 a-308 n may be related to the distance of the sensedobjects or obstacles 304. As such, for sensed objects or obstacles 304that are in motion and approaching the control target 306, the controlmodule may generate signals that increase the rate of vibration of thevibration haptic motors 308 a-308 n (e.g., this can occur in real-timeor nearly real-time as the data is continuously or substantiallycontinuously sent from the control target 306 to the controller 302). Asanother example, the pre-defined relationship between the pattern ofvibration of the vibration haptic motors 308 a-308 n and informationrelated to the sensed objects or obstacles 304 may inform which one(s)of the vibration haptic motors 308 a-308 n may vibrate depending on theinformation. For instance, if the information indicates that the sensedobject or obstacle 304 is approaching the control target 306 from theright side of the control target 306, the control module may generate asignal that causes the vibration haptic motor that is on the right sideof the controller to vibrate. FIG. 3B shows a top cross-sectional viewof an example distribution of vibration haptic motors 308 a-308 n withinthe controller 302. In such embodiment, the “right” vibration hapticmotor, which is closest to the palm of a user handling the controller(e.g., FIG. 3C), may vibrate, indicating or informing the user that thecontrol target 306 is being approached by an object or obstacle from theright side of the control target 306.

As noted above, the vibration haptic motors 308 a-308 n may be locatedwithin the controller 302. In some implementations, one or more of thevibration haptic motors 308 a-308 n may be part of or integral to otherfeatures of the controller 302. For example, the controller 302 mayinclude a thumb saddle 310 for resting a thumb of a user handling thecontroller (e.g., FIG. 3C), and one or more of the vibration hapticmotors 308 a-308 n may be integral to the thumb saddle 310. As anotherexample, the controller 302 may include a control button 312 (e.g., suchas but not limited to the trim control 202 e), and one or more of thevibration haptic motors 308 a-308 n may be integral to the controlbutton 312.

In some embodiments, each of the vibration haptic motors 308 a-308 n canbe vibrationally isolated with vibration absorbent materials, thusallowing for discrete vibration signals to be transferred to the handgrip of the controller 302. In so doing, the pilot or operator is givenspatially distinct feedback, e.g., an approaching aircraft on the leftside, etc.

In some embodiments, instead of or in addition to vibration feedback,the feedback may include visual feedback, and the feedback elements ofthe controller 302 can be one or more light sources (not shown) such asbut not limited to LEDs, etc., located on the controller 302 andconfigured to illuminate in response to the signals from the controlmodule. For example, the control module of the controller 302 maygenerate signals that are configured to cause the light sources to lightup according to a pre-defined relationship between the pattern ofillumination of the light sources and information related to the sensedobjects or obstacles 304. For instance, the pattern, intensity and/ororder of illumination of the light sources may be related to thedistance of the sensed objects or obstacles 304 and/or the rate at whichthe sensed objects or obstacles 304 are approaching the control target306. As an illustrative example, for sensed objects or obstacles 304that are in motion and approaching the control target 306, the controlmodule may generate signals that cause the light sources to increase theintensity or their illumination and/or blink rate (e.g., this can occurin real-time or nearly real-time as the data is continuously orsubstantially continuously sent from the control target 306 to thecontroller 302). As another example, the pre-defined relationshipbetween the pattern of illumination of the light sources and informationrelated to the sensed objects or obstacles 304 may inform which one(s)of the light sources may vibrate depending on the information. Forinstance, if the information indicates that the sensed object orobstacle 304 is approaching the control target 306 from the left side ofthe control target 306, the control module may generate a signal thatcauses the light sources on the left side of the controller to light up,while the light sources in the middle and the right side are off.

While various inventive embodiments have been described and illustratedherein, those of ordinary skill in the art will readily envision avariety of other means and/or structures for performing the functionand/or obtaining the results and/or one or more of the advantagesdescribed herein, and each of such variations and/or modifications isdeemed to be within the scope of the inventive embodiments describedherein. More generally, those skilled in the art will readily appreciatethat all parameters, dimensions, materials, and configurations describedherein are meant to be exemplary and that the actual parameters,dimensions, materials, and/or configurations will depend upon thespecific application or applications for which the inventive teachingsis/are used. Those skilled in the art will recognize, or be able toascertain using no more than routine experimentation, many equivalentsto the specific inventive embodiments described herein. It is,therefore, to be understood that the foregoing embodiments are presentedby way of example only and that, within the scope of the appended claimsand equivalents thereto; inventive embodiments may be practicedotherwise than as specifically described and claimed. Inventiveembodiments of the present disclosure are directed to each individualfeature, system, article, material, kit, and/or method described herein.In addition, any combination of two or more such features, systems,articles, materials, kits, and/or methods, if such features, systems,articles, materials, kits, and/or methods are not mutually inconsistent,is included within the inventive scope of the present disclosure.

The above-described embodiments can be implemented in any of numerousways. For example, embodiments of the present technology may beimplemented using hardware, firmware, software or a combination thereof.When implemented in firmware and/or software, the firmware and/orsoftware code can be executed on any suitable processor or collection oflogic components, whether provided in a single device or distributedamong multiple devices.

In this respect, various inventive concepts may be embodied as acomputer readable storage medium (or multiple computer readable storagemedia) (e.g., a computer memory, one or more floppy discs, compactdiscs, optical discs, magnetic tapes, flash memories, circuitconfigurations in Field Programmable Gate Arrays or other semiconductordevices, or other non-transitory medium or tangible computer storagemedium) encoded with one or more programs that, when executed on one ormore computers or other processors, perform methods that implement thevarious embodiments of the invention discussed above. The computerreadable medium or media can be transportable, such that the program orprograms stored thereon can be loaded onto one or more differentcomputers or other processors to implement various aspects of thepresent invention as discussed above.

The terms “program” or “software” are used herein in a generic sense torefer to any type of computer code or set of computer-executableinstructions that can be employed to program a computer or otherprocessor to implement various aspects of embodiments as discussedabove. Additionally, it should be appreciated that according to oneaspect, one or more computer programs that when executed perform methodsof the present invention need not reside on a single computer orprocessor, but may be distributed in a modular fashion amongst a numberof different computers or processors to implement various aspects of thepresent invention.

Computer-executable instructions may be in many forms, such as programmodules, executed by one or more computers or other devices. Generally,program modules include routines, programs, objects, components, datastructures, etc. that perform particular tasks or implement particularabstract data types. Typically, the functionality of the program modulesmay be combined or distributed as desired in various embodiments.

Also, data structures may be stored in computer-readable media in anysuitable form. For simplicity of illustration, data structures may beshown to have fields that are related through location in the datastructure. Such relationships may likewise be achieved by assigningstorage for the fields with locations in a computer-readable medium thatconvey relationship between the fields. However, any suitable mechanismmay be used to establish a relationship between information in fields ofa data structure, including through the use of pointers, tags or othermechanisms that establish relationship between data elements.

Also, various inventive concepts may be embodied as one or more methods,of which an example has been provided. The acts performed as part of themethod may be ordered in any suitable way. Accordingly, embodiments maybe constructed in which acts are performed in an order different thanillustrated, which may include performing some acts simultaneously, eventhough shown as sequential acts in illustrative embodiments.

All definitions, as defined and used herein, should be understood tocontrol over dictionary definitions, definitions in documentsincorporated by reference, and/or ordinary meanings of the definedterms.

The indefinite articles “a” and “an,” as used herein in thespecification and in the claims, unless clearly indicated to thecontrary, should be understood to mean “at least one.”

The phrase “and/or,” as used herein in the specification and in theclaims, should be understood to mean “either or both” of the elements soconjoined, i.e., elements that are conjunctively present in some casesand disjunctively present in other cases. Multiple elements listed with“and/or” should be construed in the same fashion, i.e., “one or more” ofthe elements so conjoined. Other elements may optionally be presentother than the elements specifically identified by the “and/or” clause,whether related or unrelated to those elements specifically identified.Thus, as a non-limiting example, a reference to “A and/or B”, when usedin conjunction with open-ended language such as “comprising” can refer,in one embodiment, to A only (optionally including elements other thanB); in another embodiment, to B only (optionally including elementsother than A); in yet another embodiment, to both A and B (optionallyincluding other elements); etc.

As used herein in the specification and in the claims, “or” should beunderstood to have the same meaning as “and/or” as defined above. Forexample, when separating items in a list, “or” or “and/or” shall beinterpreted as being inclusive, i.e., the inclusion of at least one, butalso including more than one, of a number or list of elements, and,optionally, additional unlisted items. Only terms clearly indicated tothe contrary, such as “only one of” or “exactly one of,” or, when usedin the claims, “consisting of,” will refer to the inclusion of exactlyone element of a number or list of elements. In general, the term “or”as used herein shall only be interpreted as indicating exclusivealternatives (i.e. “one or the other but not both”) when preceded byterms of exclusivity, such as “either,” “one of,” “only one of,” or“exactly one of.” “Consisting essentially of,” when used in the claims,shall have its ordinary meaning as used in the field of patent law.

As used herein in the specification and in the claims, the phrase “atleast one,” in reference to a list of one or more elements, should beunderstood to mean at least one element selected from any one or more ofthe elements in the list of elements, but not necessarily including atleast one of each and every element specifically listed within the listof elements and not excluding any combinations of elements in the listof elements. This definition also allows that elements may optionally bepresent other than the elements specifically identified within the listof elements to which the phrase “at least one” refers, whether relatedor unrelated to those elements specifically identified. Thus, as anon-limiting example, “at least one of A and B” (or, equivalently, “atleast one of A or B,” or, equivalently “at least one of A and/or B”) canrefer, in one embodiment, to at least one, optionally including morethan one, A, with no B present (and optionally including elements otherthan B); in another embodiment, to at least one, optionally includingmore than one, B, with no A present (and optionally including elementsother than A); in yet another embodiment, to at least one, optionallyincluding more than one, A, and at least one, optionally including morethan one, B (and optionally including other elements); etc.

In the claims, as well as in the specification above, all transitionalphrases such as “comprising,” “including,” “carrying,” “having,”“containing,” “involving,” “holding,” “composed of,” and the like are tobe understood to be open-ended, i.e., to mean including but not limitedto. Only the transitional phrases “consisting of” and “consistingessentially of” shall be closed or semi-closed transitional phrases,respectively, as set forth in the United States Patent Office Manual ofPatent Examining Procedures, Section 2111.03.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A controller, comprising: a first controlmember configured to be movable back and forth through three continuousand independent degrees of freedom to provide in response thereto acorresponding set of three independent control inputs; a second controlmember being a wheel and positioned on the first control member andconfigured to rotate back and forth in a single degree of freedomrelative to the first control member to provide in response thereto acorresponding fourth control input, the wheel being associated with twoor more throttle settings; a tension tuner configured to regulateresponsiveness of the wheel by varying friction experienced by the wheelwhen rotating back and forth relative to the first control member toprovide the corresponding fourth control input, wherein theresponsiveness of the wheel indicates an amount of force applied to thewheel to produce a given amount of speed for a control target acontroller processor configured to receive the set of three independentcontrol inputs and the fourth control input and generate a set of firstcontrol signals and a second control signal, respectively, the set offirst control signals configured to control three independent rotationalmovements of the control target; and the second control signalconfigured to control vertical movement of the control target whereinthe controller processor is configured to: receive feedback from thecontrol target based on sensory measurements procured by the controltarget, wherein the sensory measurements include at least a distance ofa sensed object from the control target, and an angular displacement ofthe sensed object from the control target; analyze the received feedbackand generate signals configured to trigger, based on a result of theanalysis, a user feedback system associated with the controllerprocessor, wherein the user feedback system includes a plurality ofvibration haptic motors located within the controller, and wherein aparticular one of the plurality of vibration haptic motors is activatedbased on the distance and the angular displacement of the sensed objectto the control target.
 2. The controller of claim 1, wherein the controltarget is a fixed-wing aircraft, an electric, hybrid, and/or combustionpowered aircraft, a remotely operated vehicle (ROV), a crewed aerialvehicle with distributed electric propulsion, a crewed submersible, aspacecraft, or a virtual craft.
 3. The controller of claim 1, furthercomprising a discrete control element configured to provide discretecontrol input including a trim function.
 4. The controller of claim 1,wherein the two or more throttle settings include a first throttlesetting, a second throttle setting, and a third throttle setting, thecontroller further comprising a safety mechanism that is, when engaged,configured to prevent the wheel from changing from the first throttlesetting to the second throttle setting, while allowing the wheel tochange from the first throttle setting to the third throttle setting. 5.The controller of claim 4, wherein the first throttle setting is amovement setting, the second throttle setting is an off setting, and thethird throttle setting is an idle setting.
 6. The controller of claim 4,wherein the safety mechanism is a ball plunger that is configured to bedepressed for the safety mechanism to allow the wheel to rotate when aforce is applied on the wheel.
 7. The controller of claim 1, wherein:the control target is a crewed aerial vehicle with distributed electricpropulsion; and the first control member includes a spring-centeredmechanism configured to provide translational control and rotationalcontrol.
 8. The controller of claim 1, wherein: the control target is afixed-wing aircraft; and movement forward or aft relative to alongitudinal axis of the first control member is configured to generatelongitudinal movement of the control target.
 9. The controller of claim1, wherein the controller is onboard the control target whilecontrolling the control target.
 10. The controller of claim 1, whereinthe plurality of the vibration haptic motors includes at least a rightvibration haptic motor disposed on a right side of the controller and aleft vibration haptic motor disposed on a left side of the controller,and wherein the controller processor is further configured to activate:the right vibration haptic motor based on the distance and when theangular displacement of the sensed object indicates that the sensedobject is approaching the control target from the right; and the leftvibration haptic motor based on the distance and when the angulardisplacement of the sensed object indicates that the sensed object isapproaching the control target from the left.
 11. The controller ofclaim 10, wherein the controller processor is configured to activate theright vibration haptic motor and not the left vibration haptic motor,when the indication is that the sensed object is approaching the controltarget from the right, and activate the left vibration haptic motor andnot the right vibration haptic motor, when the indication is that thesensed object is approaching the control target from the left.
 12. Thecontroller of claim 1, wherein the controller processor is furtherconfigured to send a signal to the plurality of vibration haptic motorsto increase frequency of vibration as the distance decreases.
 13. Thecontroller of claim 1, wherein the controller processor is furtherconfigured to send a signal to the plurality of vibration haptic motorsto change a frequency of vibration based on a rate at which the distancebetween the sensed object and the control target is changing.
 14. Thecontroller of claim 13, wherein the plurality of vibration haptic motorsincludes at least a left vibration haptic motor located at a left sideof the controller, a right vibration haptic motor located at a rightside of the controller, a front vibration haptic motor located at afront side of the controller and a back vibration haptic motor locatedat a back side of the controller.
 15. The controller of claim 1,wherein, each one of the plurality of vibration haptic motors isvibrationally isolated from any other one of the plurality of vibrationhaptic motors, and wherein the vibrational isolation is achieved viavibration absorbent materials disposed between each vibration hapticmotor from the plurality of vibration haptic motors.
 16. The controllerof claim 1, wherein the second control member further includes a thumbsaddle, and wherein at least one of the plurality of vibration hapticmotors is disposed within the thumb saddle.
 17. The controller of claim1, wherein the controller further includes a control button located in afront portion of the controller, and wherein at least one of theplurality of vibration haptic motors is disposed within the controlbutton.
 18. The controller of claim 1, wherein the sensory measurementsfurther include at least a measurement of a velocity of the sensedobject.
 19. The controller of claim 1, wherein the user feedback systemfurther includes a plurality of light emitting diodes (LEDs) integratedwith the controller and configured to illuminate based on the distanceand the angular displacement of the sensed object from the controltarget.
 20. The controller of claim 19, wherein the controller processoris further configured to increase at least one of illumination intensityor a blink rate of at least one LED from the plurality of LEDs as thedistance of the sensed object to the control target decreases.
 21. Thecontroller of claim 20, wherein the plurality of LEDs include a rightLED disposed on a right side of the controller and a left LED disposedon a left side of the controller, and wherein the controller processoris further configured to activate: the right LED when the angulardisplacement of the sensed object indicates that the sensed object isapproaching the control target from the right; and the left LED when theangular displacement of the sensed object indicates that the sensedobject is approaching the control target from the left.
 22. Thecontroller of claim 21, wherein the controller processor is furtherconfigured to selectively activate the right LED and not the left LED,or the left LED and not the right LED, based on a direction from whichthe control target is approaching the sensed object.
 23. The controllerof claim 1, wherein the tension tuner includes a range of values, suchthat for each value in the range of values, a user needs to apply avalue-specific amount of force to the wheel to produce the given amountof speed for the control target.
 24. A controller for controlling acontrol target having a plurality of engines, the controller comprising:a first control member configured to be movable back and forth throughthree continuous and independent degrees of freedom to provide inresponse thereto a corresponding set of three independent controlinputs; a second control member being a wheel and positioned on thefirst control member and configured to rotate back and forth in a singledegree of freedom relative to the first control member to provide inresponse thereto a corresponding fourth control input, wherein the firstcontrol member includes a plurality of other wheels, each of theplurality of other wheels being configured to control an associatedengine from the plurality of engines of the control target, each of theplurality of other wheels being associated with a first throttlesetting, a second throttle setting, and a third throttle setting; asafety mechanism that is, when engaged, configured to prevent at leastone wheel from the plurality of other wheels from changing from thefirst throttle setting to the second throttle setting, while allowingthe at least one wheel from the plurality of other wheels to change fromthe first throttle setting to the third throttle setting; asynchronicity control element configured to activate or deactivate asynchronization of rotations of the plurality of other wheels, whereinthe synchronization causes the plurality of other wheels to rotate in asubstantially similar manner, when any one wheel of the plurality ofother wheels is controlled by a user by applying a force to that wheel;and a controller processor configured to receive the set of threeindependent control inputs and the forth control input and generate aset of first control signals and a second control signal, respectively,the set of first control signals configured to control three independentrotational movements of a control target; and the second control signalconfigured to control vertical movement of the control target.
 25. Thecontroller of claim 24, wherein the synchronicity control element isconfigured to allow a substantially precise adjustment of the firstthrottle setting, the second throttle setting, and the third throttlesetting.
 26. The controller of claim 24, wherein the safety mechanism isa first safety mechanism, the controller further comprising a secondsafety mechanism, the second safety mechanism being associated withanother wheel from the plurality of other wheels, and configured toprevent that wheel from changing between the first throttle setting tothe second throttle setting.
 27. The controller of claim 26, wherein thefirst safety mechanism and the second safety mechanism are configured toprevent abrupt shutoff of a motor controlled by a wheel associated withthat safety mechanism.
 28. A controller, comprising: a first controlmember configured to be movable back and forth through three continuousand independent degrees of freedom to provide in response thereto acorresponding set of three independent control inputs; a second controlmember including a wheel and positioned on the first control member andconfigured to rotate back and forth in a single degree of freedomrelative to the first control member to provide in response thereto acorresponding fourth control input, the wheel being associated with aplurality of throttle settings inclusive of a first throttle setting, asecond throttle setting, and a third throttle setting; a safetymechanism that is, when engaged, configured to prevent the wheel fromchanging from the first throttle setting to the second throttle setting,while allowing the wheel to change from the first throttle setting tothe third throttle setting; and a controller processor configured toreceive the set of three independent control inputs and the fourthcontrol input and generate a set of first control signals and a secondcontrol signal, respectively, the set of first control signalsconfigured to control three independent rotational movements of acontrol target; and the second control signal configured to controlvertical movement of the control target.
 29. The controller of claim 28,further comprising a tension tuner configured to regulate responsivenessof the wheel by varying friction experienced by the wheel when rotatingback and forth relative to the first control member to provide thecorresponding fourth control input, wherein the responsiveness of thewheel indicates an amount of force applied to the wheel to produce agiven amount of speed for the control target.
 30. The controller ofclaim 28, wherein the first control member includes a plurality of otherwheels, each of the plurality of other wheels being configured tocontrol an associated engine from a plurality of engines of the controltarget, each of the plurality of other wheels being associated with thefirst throttle setting, the second throttle setting, and the thirdthrottle setting.